1811

JC Jacobsen is born

Our founder JC Jacobsen is born in Copenhagen, the son of a brewer.

1836

JC tastes his first bottle

JC tastes his first bottle of Bavarian lager. He travels to Munich to study the production method before returning home with some yeast and using his mother’s bath tub to experiment with making this new kind of beer.

1847

Carlsberg was founded

JC Jacobsen founds the Carlsberg brewery on a hill outside Copenhagen. He names the new brewery after his son Carl and the Danish word for hill – bjerg.
On 10th November JC brews the very first barrels of Carlsberg lager beer.

1860

Those first 300 barrels

From those first 300 barrels, production has now increased to 20,000 barrels.

1868

Samples of Carlsberg

Samples of Carlsberg are sent to grocers Russell, Leith and Theilmann in Edinburgh. Within a year Carlsberg is being shipped to India, Singapore and Hong Kong followed by South America just a few years later.

1875

Scientific Labratory founded

The scientifically-minded JC creates the Carlsberg Laboratory.

1883

Pure yeast discovered

Dr Emil Hansen discovers pure yeast at the Laboratory, which revolutionises the brewing process. JC shares the new discovery with brewers around the world and starts a new age of brewing.

1887

JC Jacobson dies

On 30 April JC dies whilst on holiday in Rome. His son Carl takes over the brewing business named after him.

1904

Carlsberg logo appears

The Carlsberg logo first appears on our beer labels, and remains the same to this day.

1909

pH scale established

The pH scale is established at the Carlsberg Laboratory.

1914

Carl Jacobson dies

Carl Jacobsen dies aged 71.

1970

The merger

Carlsberg and Tuborg merge.

1974

First UK brewery

The first Carlsberg brewery in the UK opens.

1997

Ownership of Tetley's

By now we’ve taken full ownership of Tetley’s.

2003

Carlsberg UK

This year our operation becomes known as Carlsberg UK.

2013

Sales topping £1.3 Billion

Carlsberg is now sold in over 150 countries with annual sales topping £1.3billion and our brands are the No.1 best-sellers in the lucrative take home market.

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